France, the United States and other countries’ stances with Lebanon’s ruling class seem to be intensifying after the latter failed to form a government that would pull the country out of its deep economic crisis.

Back in 2018, Lebanon was promised an $11 billion aid package at the Conference for Economic Development and Reform through Enterprises (CEDRE) in Paris aimed at rallying international countries for investment support to boost the country’s economy. The funds from CEDRE, however, were contingent on structural reforms that were never implemented; hence, the money wasn’t given.

Mass protests emerged on Oct. 17, 2019, calling for the stepping down of the political elite that have ruled the country since the 1975-1990 civil war, whom they blame for the economic collapse.

Since then, the economic crisis has worsened and was exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic that left the country with massive hyperinflation, more than 50% poverty levels and the depreciation of the Lebanese pound by more than 80% in a country that relies almost entirely on imports.